Easter 2
Collect for Easter 2
Almighty Father, you have given your only Son to die for our sins
and to rise again for our justification: Grant us so to put away the leaven
of malice and wickedness that we may always serve you in pureness of living and truth;
through the merits of your Son.
1 John 1: 1-4
John 20: 19-29
Witnesses to the resurrection
Mary Magdalene in the garden John 20:18 ‘I have seen the Lord’
Disciples on the road to Emmaus Luke 24:31 ‘Their eyes were opened and they recognised Him’
Disciples on the beach. John 21:7 ‘It is the Lord’
In the locked upper room John 20: 20 ‘ On seeing the Lord, the disciples were overjoyed’
Thomas 20:28 ‘My Lord and my God’
On the road to Damascus Acts 9:4,5 Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ He asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ The reply came, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.’
Stephen the martyr (Acts 7:56): But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’
You and me: John 20:29 ‘Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’
We can take lessons from Thomas and Stephen
From Thomas: to see the Lord on our own terms – what proof do we need in order to believe?
From Stephen: after the Resurrection, in the Power of the Spirit
We are challenged to decide what we need to ‘see’ to believe – and then to seek it in the power of the Holy Spirit. And when we have seen, ‘to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that He has commanded us. And remember, He is with us always, to the end of the age.’ Matthew 28:19, 20
Previous Posts
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‘Those who want to save their life will lose it’, said Jesus, but though people hear Him, they don’t actually listen.
Praying Together 27th August 2023
In the end, it is Peter, once again, who takes the step that faith demands. Thousands since that day have proclaimed the same. And so do I.
Praying Together 20th August 2023
As are we all, whoever we may be – Jew, Greek, slave, free, man, woman. One in Jesus, the Christ. That’s the important bit.
Praying Together 13th August 2023
Once in a while, we might close our earthly eyes and leap over the side. There is nothing that Jesus asks us that we can’t achieve.
Praying Together 6th August 2023
The prophecy is fulfilled, the light has come, the day will dawn and the morning star will rise in our hearts. Hallelujah.
Praying Together 30th July 2023
The treasure is there – it just needs to be found. We search for truth, and realise that Jesus is the truth; the way; and the life.
Praying Together 23rd July 2023
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.
Praying Together 9th July 2023
‘What do I have to do to be free?’, they ask. What will it cost me?
Just believe, He says. I’ll buy it for you. On a cross
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When we are baptised in Christ, washed free of our past, we have the opportunity of starting again. We try – and will inevitably fail. But that mustn’t stop us trying.
Praying Together 18th June 2023
Someone once asked who would be the best person to talk about Jesus to a lorry driver. To which the answer is ‘another lorry driver’.
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Faith is to know that however cold the winter, however dark the night, a new Spring morning will flood creation with light and warmth.
Praying Together 28th May 2023
Who does God send to tell the World?
You.